Just One Night
by hasapi
Summary: [COMPLETE] Just when Harry gets ready to admit his feelings to Hermione, she falls in love with someone else. But someone else has noticed Harry, and she's determined to get him...even if it's just for one night.
1. In Your Mind

**A/N: Okay, this is my first attempt at Harry Potter fan fiction. I've been reading it for a while, but I just recently got an idea. So this is my attempt at writing it. (And if I do say so myself, it's a very good attempt!)**

**Rating: PG-13. For, uh, racy comments, I suppose. Might be R in future chapters, depending on whether I can write the REALLY racy stuff.**

**Pairing: Not telling. Well, I'll add it at Chapter 3, because by then you'll know. **

**Disclaimer: Any characters you recognize (basically, all of them) are J.K. Rowling's. I like never make up my own when writing fan fiction. I don't know why. I just know that J.K. Rowling has all the cool toys and I don't. *sobs* Wait. *stops crying* That's right! I stole them… *laughs evilly* So I have cool toys as well… **

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_I love you_

_But you don't love me_

_So my feelings just stay_

_In that horrible way_

_Bottled up, seeking a way out…_

_A way that will never come to be_

_Because I love you_

_But you don't love me_

***************

Harry glanced over at Hermione and Draco. They were dancing. Again. What had it been? Nine times now? He sighed. He'd waited too long, once again. He wished Ron weren't dancing with Padma. Who would have guessed that those two would hit it off? Especially after the Yule Ball fiasco in their fourth year. 

It was now their seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And he had no one. He'd never had anyone. The first two years, he hadn't been interested in girls. The next three had been spent pining for Cho. And then last year had been the busiest year of all, with Hermione panicking about not making Head Girl – therefore studying more than ever, if that was possible – and, of course, the final defeat of Voldemort. The aftermath was still going on, but that didn't involve Harry as much. He just had to make sure no Voldemort supporters, still holding out hope about another return, tried and succeeded in killing him. 

Ginny wasn't interested in him anymore, and he'd never really been interested in her anyways. Neville had grown up quite a bit since his fourth year (Professor Snape had a hard time making him sweat anymore – let's just say that the boggart incident really helped), and he and Ginny were obviously in love. 

There were always the other girls who 'loved' him – but he didn't want an adoring fan who agreed with everything he said. That was one of the reasons he'd been attracted to Hermione. She challenged him constantly, and, to top it all off, she'd grown up quite a bit. He'd first noticed at the Yule Ball their fourth year, but she'd grown up even more by the beginning of seventh year. 

And now she was Draco's. He'd barely even gotten an explanation. They'd just shown up with each other at the last ball. Afterwards she'd explained – to both Harry and Ron – that she had really gotten to know Draco, what with them both being the Heads, and that they should make an effort as well, since she had a feeling this wasn't a fling.

And while Draco's attitude toward Hermione's best friends had changed, his overall one had stayed the same. He'd mentioned something about keeping up appearances when they'd asked. Harry supposed he was telling the truth, but it didn't make much sense, since he had supposedly broken every rule in his father's book. Dating a Muggle-born witch. Becoming 'friends' with Harry Potter and poverty-stricken Ronald Weasley. Being on speaking terms with the Muggle-lover Dumbledore. Needless to say, Draco and his father had not spoken in a long while.

Harry glanced around the room again. It was nice, he had to admit. The Great Hall was sparkling, the Weird-Sisters were rocking (or whatever it was called in the Wizarding world), and everyone was dancing. He wished he could identify more people, but the only ones he knew well enough to identify without a face were Hermione, Ginny, Ron, Padma, Neville, and Draco. That was the annoying thing about masquerade balls. 

***

A young girl – woman, really – watched him from across the room. He never glanced her way. He never had. Not in the six long years they'd both been going to Hogwarts, and not in the partial one that was not yet over. She supposed she couldn't blame him. After all, why would he look at her? She was everything he was not. He was everything she was not. There was no hope for her infatuation, and she knew it. 

She'd fallen the first time she'd seen him, no matter they'd both been eleven at the time. He had, of course, not even looked her way. She'd had a boyfriend later on, so she supposed she couldn't blame him that much. But she didn't now. That made for a lot of possibilities…

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. But they didn't want to go. _Just one night! her mind screamed at her. __One night is all you need, then you can go back to craving him in peace. It was so tempting. It would be so easy. It was a masquerade, after all. He was obviously wallowing, still. She had watched him long enough to realize his feelings for Hermione, even if the girl herself had been too dense to notice. __But she's got Draco now, so I suppose she's happy, anyway. _

_One night.__ Just one night. He's wallowing… he needs to let out his frustration … just offer a way to do so. A very tempting way, if she did say so herself. _

***

Harry swirled the glass of butterbeer absentmindedly. He honestly had no idea what to do. At this point, he'd generally been talking to Ron about Voldemort or some equally important thing. But not this year. This year had been almost … boring. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around. He smiled. He couldn't help it. The girl was simply beautiful. She smiled back.

Glancing down her figure, he fought to keep a grin off his face. He might have been in love with Hermione, but he had to admit, this girl was simply stunning. "Would you like to dance?" he blurted out before he could change his mind. Luckily, he didn't sound at all stupid.

The girl nodded her head and he took her arm. Just as they got to the dance floor, a slow song came on. They set themselves up, then simply stared at each other. At least, that's what Harry assumed the girl was doing. He couldn't quite tell, with that mask. As the song came to a close, the girl smiled seductively and led him back to the doors, where they slipped out. She placed her mouth near his ear and whispered, "Do you happen to know of a place where we won't be disturbed for a few hours?"

Harry shivered. He knew what the girl was asking. It was just – he'd never – well… 

She leaned back and smiled in an understanding way. "So you've never done it, have you?"

Harry pulled at the collar of his robes nervously. "Er…"

She nodded her head, still smiling. "You never answered my question…"

Harry's mind blanked for a second. _What question? Oh, right, that question. He cleared his throat. "Well, there is this one place – the third floor corridor. The one that was forbidden first year. I don't think anyone goes up there anymore."_

"Lead the way, Monsieur." 

***************

**A/N: Okay, I'm sorry if you don't like the pairings. I just kind of came up with all of this spur of the moment. The only one I just couldn't resist was the Hermione/Draco, since I love Draco (in the fanfics). The Ginny/Neville one? Well, I once read a story about a guy who was a total and complete klutz, but then he turned out okay. So I figured, why not Neville? And he asked Ginny to the Yule Ball in his fourth year, and, well, let's just say I got a little sentimental or whatever. Thus explaining the Padma/Ron pairing. And if any of you were wondering why I had Harry pining over Hermione, it was mostly because I needed him to pine over SOMEONE, and I decided that he would lose them to Draco. That meant (for me, anyway) either Hermione or Ginny, and since Ginny is a lot more difficult, since she isn't even in the same year, so it's harder to set up situations that would prelude a romance, I decided to do Hermione. It was way too easy, with the Heads thing. **

And people? If you don't like the pairings, then don't read the fricking story. No flames please.


	2. In the Dark

**A/N:** Okay, this is my first attempt at Harry Potter fan fiction. I've been reading it for a while, but I just recently got an idea. So this is my attempt at writing it. (And if I do say so myself, it's a very good attempt!)

**Rating:** PG-13. For, uh, racy comments, I suppose. This one might be pushing R, but not really. 

**Pairing:** The main one, all I'm going to tell you is that it's Harry and someone else. Otherwise, we have Ron/Padma, Draco/Hermione, and Neville/Ginny. 

**Disclaimer:** Harry, Hermione, Ron, Draco, Padma, Parvati, Dumbledore, Snape, Ginny, Neville, Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, Blaise, and anyone else I've forgotten to mention, are not mine. They are the property of Joanne K. Rowling, a genius in her own right. I'm just, uh … _borrowing_ them.

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Harry led her down the hallway, towards the third floor. She was extremely excited. In just a few minutes, she would be on her way to having a _very_ nice evening with Harry Potter. She sighed inwardly. Who would have guessed that she would fall for him? Definitely not her. He wasn't particularly popular with her family. And he was, of course, half-Muggle-born. No matter that he had almost single-handedly defeated the greatest Dark wizard of their times. 

It didn't help that her mother had been a supporter of You-Know-Who. She'd never been able to bring herself to say his name. She knew she wasn't strong, that she was weak. She was what everyone believed her to be… A Mudblood-hater and all-around shallow little girl. But another part of her disagreed with that. The part that had listened to her father's stories about "electricity," and "airplanes," and so many other things that Muggles used in place of magic. The part that had believed so fiercely for so long that her father was right, that she _was beautiful, and could be anything she wanted to be._

But she knew that was a lie. She was practically a slut. So she'd only done it a few times … with the same guy. She'd never really wanted to. But her mother had told her that she had to. Her mother scared her, so she'd never gone against her mother's wishes, never needing to be told twice. But it hadn't meant anything. And in her eyes, that made her a slut. So why was she going for a one-night stand with Harry Potter? 

Because she knew that she could never have anything more with him, and, this time at least, she wouldn't be a slut. She wanted to do this with all her heart, and she would always treasure it in her heart. 

Damn her mother to hell. 

***

Harry's heart was pounding fiercely within his chest as he pulled the girl – woman, really – down the corridors. More than once he was certain he heard footsteps, but just as quickly as he heard them, they had disappeared. They had probably never even been there. _Gods, Potter. Are you crazy? You don't even know this girl._

The rational part of his brain was right. This was, no doubt, the stupidest thing he had ever done. But something made him continue walking – almost running – to the third floor. There was something about her… But he didn't know who she was. He was almost certain that he'd heard her voice before, but he couldn't place it. 

He sighed in relief as he reached the door, and pulled out his wand. He whispered "_Alohomora_," before pushing the door open and pulling the girl through. She glanced around, smiling softly, and walked over to the far side of the room. There was a moth-eaten couch there, which she quickly sat down on. Harry followed slowly, just looking at her. 

The soft mauve-color of her robes was exquisite, and they were obviously well-made. But that didn't narrow it down much. Plenty of Wizarding families had money … although some had lost it after Voldemort's fall, trying to get out of Azkaban. Her honey-blonde hair had been pulled up in a French twist, and she was … healthily thin, he supposed it would be called. 

He sat down, now feeling extremely nervous. What was he supposed to do? He'd never done this before. He'd never even done … it … before. 

His thoughts were silenced when a pair of lips descended on his. The first thought that popped into his mind was that she tasted minty. He almost laughed at that, but was too busy just _feeling. Truthfully, this was his first real kiss. The girl's arms had come around his neck, and she pushed him down until she was lying on top of him. _

He raised his arms hesitantly, wrapping one around her waist while the other delved into her hair. She groaned, her mouth opening slightly, allowing her tongue to slip out and tempt him into opening his mouth. When he consented, and her tongue slipped into his mouth, teaching his to dance with hers… He was certain he had died. All rational thought slipped from his brain until all that was left was feeling. 

***

Harry lay on the couch with his arms wrapped around the girl. She was sleeping soundly against his chest, her robe draped over her, his beneath them. He was tempted to remove her mask, but she'd asked that he not, and he wanted to respect her wishes. She'd kept it on the entire time they had been… Harry wasn't sure what to call it. He supposed sex would be appropriate. But it seemed so crude. And what they had done hadn't quite been making love. It was only a one-night-stand, after all.

He still wasn't sure what had made him accept her offer. As she'd suspected, he'd never had sex before. So why had he chosen the first time to be with her? Intuition, he supposed. He sensed that she was actually a very nice girl. And nothing had happened to dispute that. 

She stirred, lifting her head and looking at him. "Is this a dream?" she mumbled.

Harry laughed nervously. "Erm…no, I don't think so."

She seemed to be processing this information, as well as some that she didn't share with him. She glanced down, and, taking in their lack of clothing, she flushed. 

Harry looked at her nervously. Was she going to regret it? Despite the fact that nearly every fiber of his being knew that this was wrong, _he didn't regret it. And even though she had been the one to approach him, he was worried that she would regret it. "Uh…" he trailed off. He really couldn't think of anything that was appropriate to say in this situation. "Can I ask you what your name is?"_

She smiled. "You can ask, but that doesn't mean I'll answer."

Harry snorted. "You sound like Dumbledore."

The girl laughed, a rich, throaty sound that made Harry's already light mood even lighter. Trailing a finger down his chest, she whispered, "But I don't think Dumbledore would be in this situation…" the finger reached his belly button, and she paused, seeming to contemplate her next words. "Perhaps we might continue this?"

A grin slowly appeared on Harry's face, which he lowered until he could claim her lips with his own. Thus the dance began again, and continued, long into the night.

***

The young woman sat up, every part of her body screaming to lay back down on the couch. But she had to go. Just one night. That was all she had promised herself. There was no future for them. It wasn't as though he returned her feelings… _And that was all that mattered, she mused. She'd had her night. Now it was time to leave._

***

Harry felt her leave the couch, and waited a few seconds before opening his eyes. She was putting her robe back on, and trying to make her hair presentable. He smiled. It was his fault it was that way. He lifted himself onto his elbows, and her head snapped up, their eyes making contact.

"Will you never tell me who you are?" he whispered.

"I…"

"Please. Just, at some point, I'd like to know."

She sighed. "I'll tell you at the Graduation Ball. Save me the last dance."

And then she was gone.

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**A/N:** Thanks to Caffine, the first (and so far only, but I won't dwell on that…) person to review this story!

Hey, can anyone figure out who the mystery woman is? I don't think I've left enough clues yet, but we'll find out more soon…


	3. In the Morning

**A/N:** Well, looks like I _did_ leave enough clues. I'm still not adding it to the pairing though… Congrats to Intuerimors and PassionPolice237 for figuring it out.

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairing:** Okay, so here's Chapter 3… and, unfortunately, I'm still not telling. *backs away from the many glares received* Harry/?, Ron/Padma, Hermione/Draco, and Ginny/Neville. Oh, but I might reveal something/someone else in this chapter… 

*receives more glares, and one idiot tries to perform the Imperius on her while another slips Veritaserum into her drink*

*rolls eyes as she quickly deflects the curse and throws the drink in the fire* Oh, fine. I'll include it next chapter. (I've got a pretty high opinion of myself, don't I?)

**Disclaimer:** Nothing in here is mine except the plot. You're just going to have to accept that. 

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Harry lay in his bed early the next morning, staring at nothing. He'd returned to Gryffindor Tower after _she_ had left, wishing he knew who she was. For all he knew, she could be sleeping in the girl's dormitory… But something made him think that she wasn't a Gryffindor. He wasn't sure why. Intuition, he supposed. He snorted. He'd been basing a lot on intuition lately. But then again, he'd always based everything on intuition. 

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. He couldn't believe he'd just done that. He wasn't even over Hermione yet! Hell, he'd barely even started _trying_ to get over her. But he had to admit that what had happened the night before had helped him a lot. It had reminded him that there were other girls besides Hermione. And maybe it hadn't been the best way, but it had happened and, as much as he didn't want to admit it … he didn't regret it. 

Harry sighed again, finally letting a thought surface. He'd been trying to keep it down. The girl was a slut. Truthfully, it made sense. After all, she'd only promised him a one-night-stand. Wasn't that what sluts did? But he hesitated at calling her a slut, because even though she'd done what she had, there was something about her, something that said she was … true, brave, loving, caring, and all around a good person. And the definition of slut that he knew of did not have those words in it.

In fact, she was the farthest thing from a slut, in his mind. And although he didn't entirely understand why, he knew that he believed it.

***

Harry groaned as he sat down in the Transfiguration classroom. They shared this class with the Slytherins, who had been almost more hostile to the Gryffindors than ever, once Draco and Hermione had started dating. And today McGonagall would be pairing them with a partner to work with on their end-of-year project. Although he knew that McGonagall would rather keep the Gryffindors with Gryffindors and the Slytherins with Slytherins, Dumbledore had been working on inter-house relations this year, so McGonagall would most likely pair the Gryffindors with Slytherins and vice versa. 

If he could be paired with anyone from Slytherin, he hoped it would be Draco, if only because he was less hostile than any of the others. But alas, his hopes were not to be…

"Alright," Professor McGonagall began. "I have tried to pair you together with those of the same Transfiguration abilities as yourself… Oh, and you shall sit with your partner for the rest of the year. Miss Bulstrode and Mister Weasley, Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger, Mister Goyle and Miss Brown, Mister Crabbe and Miss Patil, Miss Parkinson and Mister Potter..."

Pansy Parkinson?! He had to work with _her? She was a sl—Harry almost blanched at what he had been about to say. Truthfully, he knew he'd have trouble calling anyone a slut anymore, since that was what most people would call _that_ girl. It was extremely annoying not being able to call her by a name. He sighed inwardly, sneaking a glance at the Slytherin. She was looking down at her notes with a blank expression upon her face. He wondered what she was thinking…_

_Ugh! Snap out of it, Potter! What's gotten into you? You were wondering what Pansy Parkinson was thinking? That can't be good…_

He groaned, not loud enough for anyone else to hear, but loud enough that he felt better. What had happened to him? 

***

Pansy had almost visibly paled when she heard that she had to do the Transfiguration project with Harry. _Oh, Gods, why me? her mind screamed. She still couldn't believe she'd acquiesced to telling him who she was. At least she had until the Graduation Ball, and hopefully she wouldn't have to see him again after that. As much as she wished there was a future for her infatuation, she knew that he'd never be able to see her in the same light as she saw him. _

She sighed as she stood, gathering her things and preparing to walk to where Harry was sitting. Setting her books down, she snuck a quick glance at him. He seemed to be doing his best to ignore her, though she knew he wouldn't be able to for long, as McGonagall would pounce on them – _almost literally, Pansy chuckled to herself – when she saw their lack of communication._

She cleared her throat, hoping that her mask stayed in place. She almost scowled at herself. It always stayed in place. No one had ever been able to read her true emotions. As much as they thought she was just a brainless twit, she was so much more than that. She prided herself on the fact that none of them suspected a thing. Not Harry, nor Draco, or any other Slytherins. She was so much more brilliant than they knew. If any of them bothered to look at the charts, they would know that she was fourth in her year, only behind Hermione, Draco, and some Ravenclaw girl, respectively. 

Truthfully, she knew that she barely beat Potter in many of their classes, and he had some head on her in Defense Against the Dark Arts. She was actually quite excited to be working with him one this project, although she knew it would be difficult being so close to him, and yet not being able to touch him, nor even have him speak to her civilly. 

Harry cleared his throat and shot her a look before saying, quietly, "So…"

She sighed, looking at him. "I would like to ask for a truce. I want to do well on this project, but that won't happen if we're trying to kill each other," she said the last bit sarcastically, and added a scowl on the end for good emphasis. 

Harry's eyes widened in what she knew to be shock. He obviously had not expected that from her, and she laughed inwardly. "Er… of course," he replied, flustered, and held out his hand. 

Pansy eyed it for a second before holding out her own, and they shook on it. But as soon as their fingers touched, she felt the same electricity that she had the night before. She hadn't admitted – nor even really noticed – it, but it had been there all the same. And if she wasn't mistaken, he had noticed it too, as his eyes had widened, then narrowed, contemplating her. 

She knew curiosity when she saw it, but luckily, it was something she was completely prepared to fend off. 

***************

**A/N:** Pairing Crabbe and Goyle with Parvati and Lavender, respectively, was not an insult to the girls' brains, but rather a thought that maybe Crabbe and Goyle aren't as stupid as they seem. 

And here are the individual replies to your reviews (this is the first time I've ever done them!)…

Caffine: I didn't get the thing about the Chinese characters, but thanks for liking the story!

Intuerimors: And you are correct! As you've probably figured out from this chapter, lol.

PassionPolice237: Congrats on figuring it out… I honestly hadn't thought I left enough clues. But then again, I sometimes think I have to shout it from the rooftops for people to notice something. I had planned on leaving her identity 'unknown,' but realized that I couldn't. Sadly. 

Kiely34: Thanks for liking and for reading!


	4. In My Lies

**A/N:** Well, this is, of course, the chapter four. I think it starts where the other left off, and this one's called, "In My Lies." 

I'm trying to get all of these chapters around 1500 words… and this one is just over that amount. *grins* 

If anyone wants to be e-mailed when I get a new chapter up, please leave your e-mail address and say that you want the announcement/thing.

**Rating:** PG-13 for suggestive language, etc.

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, and Ginny/Neville

**Disclaimer:** We all know that if I owned this, I would not be posting it on fanfiction.net, I would be selling it and making millions of dollars. Well, if people can stomach the Harry/Pansy pairing, lol.

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Harry narrowed his eyes as he stared at Pansy. There was something familiar about her...more, of course, than the fact that they'd been going to the same school for almost seven years. But the only way that he would think that would be if...no. She couldn't be the girl. It was impossible. Unthinkable. Everyone knew that Pansy was an ice-bitch -- as much as it pained him to say it, seeing as how Harry really was a nice boy -- who sucked up to the Malfoys and other influential Death Eaters. He let the thought pass, and quickly dropped her hand. 

It would be hard enough working on this project with her. It wouldn't help if he suspected her of being the first girl -- he gulped -- he'd ever had sex with. He almost wished that he hadn't. But there was another part of him that stomped on the guilt so quickly, he wasn't even sure it had been there in the first place. 

They sat in silence a few more minutes before McGonagall glared at them, at which time they quickly got to work. 

***

Harry packed up his books slowly, and was not surprised to find his two best friends waiting impatiently outside the room. 

"Where were you?" Hermione demanded, frowning. They started towards the Gryffindor Common Room.

"I could have used your help out here," Ron said, scowling at Hermione.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "He's just upset because Draco kissed me."

Ron reddened. "Well he didn't have to be so..."

Harry laughed, trying to ignore the sharp pain in the area near his heart. "Let me guess. He started to just give her a peck on the cheek, but then you glared at him, and he pulled her into a passionate kiss." It was the same old story, every time. No matter how much he tried to get along with Hermione's friends, Draco couldn't resist annoying Ron. 

Ron looked at Harry closely. He knew that Harry was in love with Hermione. It was why he had always chased away any boys that were after her. But Ron hadn't known about Draco's and Hermione's relationship early enough, before the two had formed an attachment. And so now it was almost impossible to get Draco to go. Ron was worried about Harry, plain and simple. 

Hermione chuckled slightly before frowning again. "Well, what took so long? You know very well it doesn't take that long to pack up your books."

Harry shrugged noncommittally.

Ron eyed him. "It was Pansy, wasn't it? That bi--"

Both Harry and Hermione yelled "Ron!" at the same time.

"Pansy is not a bitch," Hermione said so slowly, it was obvious she was trying to keep her temper in check. "And I would think that after my dating Draco, you would be more accepting of the fact that not all Slytherins are bad." She brightened. "Did you know that she's fourth in our year? Only Draco, Brianna Evans, and myself are ahead of her. She even beat you, Harry," she said, nodding at her best friend.

Harry raised a brow. "Well, before today I might not have believed you. But I found out while we were talking about the project, where and when to meet and such, that she's almost as organized as you are. And she takes notes meticulously."

Hermione smiled at Ron. "See?"

Ron scowled at them. "Fine."

Hermione's smiled melted into a smirk as she looked at Ron. "So, how was Millicent?"

Ron shuddered. "Not good. She looked like she wanted to bite my head off."

They had gotten to the Fat Lady's portrait, and Harry gave the password, "Frog legs." The Fat Lady winked at them and opened the portrait. 

As they walked into the common room, Hermione's smirk widened. "Maybe she wanted to bite somethi--"

"Hermione!" Ron gasped, attracting the attention of the other students in the common room. "You've been spending way too much time around Draco. Don't you agree, Harry?"

But Harry had already left for the dormitory.

***

Pansy lay back in her bed and sighed. They'd gotten a good amount of the work done, or at least the first part of it. Pansy was happy to say that Harry did quite well in Transfiguration. Of course, she'd been watching him for the past six and half years, but she had never gotten to see him really work. She would have been accused of trying to cheat if anyone had caught her taking a peek at his homework or a project he was working on. She sighed. It was one of the bad things about being a Slytherin.

The hat had wanted to put her in Ravenclaw, but she'd told it no, quite firmly, that if she didn't get into Slytherin, her mother wouldn't like it. The hat had conceded, if a bit unwillingly. She remembered the exact words so well, she knew they would be forever engrained in her memory...

"_Ah, a Parkinson...your family has a history in Slytherin. Hufflepuff? Pfft. No, you're much too smart for Hufflepuff... You're cunning, as well. While they are all good qualities in a Slytherin, I also find ... honor, and loyalty. All good Gryffindor traits. But I do not believe that is the house for you ...  You've got brains, yes... Oh, yes. You would do quite well in Ravenclaw. No? Then it better be SLYTHERIN!_" 

Pansy shook her head, trying to shake the memory. The fact that she might have better chance with Harry if she had only let the hat do what it wanted always made her depressed. Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad...

But she knew it was a lie. Her mother would have pulled her out of Hogwarts if Pansy had become a Ravenclaw. And then she wouldn't even have had the solace of being able to watch him. 

Pansy glanced at the clock. It was a few more minutes till she needed to head to lunch, so she grabbed the Transfiguration homework McGonagall had assigned to them. Just because they were working on a project was no reason to neglect their other studies, especially with the NEWTs coming up. Or so McGonagall said. 

After finishing the work, she realized that she was about ten minutes late for lunch. She quickly grabbed the books for her next class and hurried towards the Great Hall.

Unfortunately, there was another person late for lunch, and they were coming from the opposite direction, neither watching where they were going.

Not surprisingly, they collided. Books, quills, and scrolls went flying, but luckily, Pansy was stopped from falling by a pair of strong arms. She recognized them, although she knew he didn't know she did. She'd spent almost three hours with him on the third floor...

Pansy snapped herself out of her thoughts and quickly stepped back from the man -- for a man he was, much more than a boy in both mind and form -- and bent down to start picking up her things. She berated herself mentally as she picked up the quills and scrolls, and was startled when the man knelt down to help. He handed her the books, gave her a small smile, and headed into the Great Hall. Pansy stared after him, wondering if he knew how much the help -- not to mention the smile -- had meant to her.

***

Harry frowned into his chicken and ham sandwich. He was sitting in the Great Hall, trying to eat lunch.

"Harry? What's the matter?" Hermione, who was sitting on his right, asked him. 

Ron, next to Hermione, nodded vigorously, his mouth full of food. 

Harry shrugged. "Nothing." Hermione raised a brow superciliously. "Fine. I ran into Pansy out in the hall. Literally." But he stopped there.

Hermione nodded, obviously accepting the fact that he wasn't going to say anything more. Ron, however, did not. He and Hermione began arguing about Pansy again.

Harry drifted back into his thoughts. Why had he helped Pansy pick up her things? He would have thought instinct, but he'd noticed it was her before he helped. She'd seemed awestruck by his behavior, and he couldn't help but share her amazement. He knew that if Draco had knocked Hermione down in the hallway he would have sneered at her--

Harry jerked, almost visibly. No, he corrected himself slowly, that was the old Draco. The one before his father died. The one before the fall of the Dark Lord. The one still in fear of what would happen if he didn't live up to his father's -- as well as Voldemort's -- wishes and expectations. The new Draco... the new Draco would have helped Hermione just like Harry had helped Pansy.

And that disturbed him more than anything.


	5. In My Alliances

**A/N:** Chapter Five!! The one you've all been waiting for! Well, maybe not, I really don't know... But anyways, read it! You'll have fun. This chapter brings in more of the characters, instead of just focusing on Pansy and Harry, which, while fun, gets boring after a while. Enjoy!

**P.S. Hi again! This is a repost as of January 26, 2003. This is the SECOND repost of this chapter. I disliked the first draft, and then I wrote something out of the repost that was actually pretty important to the story, so that's why I'm reposting it. Again. Hope that makes sense. So, I hope you have fun reading. Sorry bout all the reposts. This should be the last one. **

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, and Ginny/Neville

**Disclaimer:** To own or not to own... Not.

I'm getting really desperate, aren't I? I don't even own this disclaimer, it's just a famous rip-off of Shakespeare...

**************

Hermione leaned back into her chair, staring at her boyfriend. Draco was sitting across from her in the common room they shared as Head Boy and Girl, smirking.

"What?" he asked her innocently. It was a very interesting look, paired with that smirk...

Hermione shook herself inwardly and glared at him. "You know how upset Ron gets whenever you kiss me."

His smirk grew wider as he replied, "Well, gee, I didn't notice."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "When you don't notice is when Millicent Bulstrode beats me in Transfiguration."

"Hey, she's a Slytherin as well," he mock glared at her.

Hermione copied Draco's former smirk. "So you admit it."

Draco rolled his eyes, then smiled at her mischievously. "Come here."

She raised a brow as if to say, 'Like I'd fall for that one,' then said imperiously, "Why don't you come over here?"

Draco sighed, defeated, and stood, walking over to the Gryffindor-themed chair and grabbed Hermione's hand, hauling her up. He sat down and pulled the girl into his lap. She chuckled, leaning back into his body.

"You know, if you wanted me to sit in your lap, all you had to do was ask."

Draco grinned against her hair, wrapping his arms around her middle. "Where's the fun in that?"

She sighed, letting her mind wander to other things. Ron, Harry... She gasped. Draco immediately stiffened.

"What?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm sorry, it's not that bad, it's just..." she trailed off uncertainly.

"Just what?" 

"Well...it's Harry. And not just Harry..." She paused, wondering whether she should tell him what she knew. "It's ... Pansy."

Draco frowned. "What about her?"

"Well... I've been watching her since the beginning of the year, and I realized something. But before I tell you, you have to swear not to reveal it to anyone."

"Of course not," Draco asserted.

Hermione smiled. "Okay. Don't laugh..."

Draco sighed. "And I was all ready."

Hermione rolled her eyes, grinning. "Okay, okay. I think that Pansy's in love with Harry."

Draco started shaking.

Hermione frowned. "I told you not to laugh."

"I'm not laughing," he said, in a tightly controlled voice.

Hermione scowled at him. "Fine. Laugh." She was surprised he didn't bust a gut. But the sound of his laughter was so wonderful... Hermione shook herself out of her thoughts again. She needed to stay at the task at hand. When she felt his laughter dying down, she said quietly, "What's so funny about it, anyways?"

"Well," he said slowly, "it's mostly just that she likes him. And, according to you, loves him. I mean, he's The Boy Who Lived. Her mother..." he shook his head. "Let's just say she's the female version of my father." His arms tightened around her.

Hermione nodded. She knew exactly what he meant. But... "How do you know that she isn't the female version of you?"

He shrugged. "I don't. I mean, she was the closest thing I had to a friend, but we still weren't all that close."

Hermione sighed, and leaned against Draco once more. His arms tightened around her as he buried his face in her neck, and he sighed, saying quietly, "He loves you, you know."

Hermione frowned, confused. "Who?"

"Harry."

Hermione's first reaction was to laugh, but then she frowned again. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, first of all, the way he looks at you. Then there's the fact that Ron blows up whenever I even touch you."

Hermione raised a brow, questioning, "Wouldn't that imply that Ron's the one who's in love with me?"

Draco sighed raggedly, as if the answer should have been obvious. "No. He's in love with Padma. Have you seen the way he looks at her?" He shook his head. "Have you ever seen Harry go out with anyone? Anyone at all?" When she didn't reply, he continued. "He's never dated anyone, not even that Chang girl he was head-over-heels for in our fourth and fifth years."

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Hermione suddenly sat up, and turned in his lap. He loosened his arms until they rested on her hips. "Hey..." she trailed off, smirking suggestively. "What if we set them up?"

"Who?"

"Harry and Pansy, of course! She's in love with him, and he needs to get over me."

Draco nodded slowly, pursing his lips. "Okay. But how are we going to do that? She's a Slytherin, he's a Gryffindor," he put a finger over her lips when he saw she was trying to contradict him, and continued, "and they don't have the luxury of a shared common room." 

Hermione sighed, defeated. "You're right, of course."

"I'm always right," he smirked.

"Yeah, right." Hermione rolled her eyes. "So you want to know how? Well, Professor McGonagall's helped us out a little with that one. If you don't remember, she paired them together for the Transfiguration project. And," she poked him in the chest, "they have to sit together for the rest of the year."

"Oh, that's right."

Hermione smirked. "You were probably too caught up in thanking the gods that she'd paired us together."

Draco shrugged, a small smirk emerging. "Maybe."

"Whatever am I going to do with you?" she asked rhetorically, before leaning down and brushing her lips against his. As she pulled away, his hand came up and grasped her neck, pulling her back down. Hermione smiled against his lips, and let herself be caught up in the wave of passion.

***

Hermione snuggled against Draco's chest, sighing contentedly. "So," she smiled. "Whatever are we going to do with Harry and Pansy?" They were lying on the couch in the common room, where they had moved after the chair had grown uncomfortable. 

Draco sighed. "Why don't we focus on the more immediate problem of who you're going to cheer at the next game."

Hermione furrowed her brow before realizing what he was talking about. "Oh, dear." Draco raised a brow. She glared at him. "You know very well that I can't abandon Harry. He's been one of my best friends since our first year."

Draco sighed again. "That doesn't mean I can't wish. Too bad you can't take some Polyjuice Potion or something."

Hermione raised a brow. "And then who would take my place? And for that matter, who would I _be_?"

Draco shrugged. "I don't know. It was just an idea."

Hermione sighed again, resting her head against her boyfriend's shoulder. "I wonder if Pansy's ever had the same problem…" She gasped, sitting up. "That's it Draco! Pansy!" Her mind was working quickly, forming a plan.

Draco, however, wasn't paying attention. "What?" 

"Draco!" She turned around and glared at him.

He rested his head on his arm and cocked a brow, smirking. "What?"

"Pay attention!" 

Draco sighed. 

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, grow up." She stood and grinned at him. "So. Are you gonna help me with the Potion?"

***

Pansy gulped. Hermione Granger had just pulled her into the bathroom, and was smiling at her. "What is it?" she asked quietly, her voice trembling.

Hermione just smiled at her and walked past her to one of the stalls. "Have you heard of the Polyjuice Potion?"

Pansy furrowed her brow. "Of course I have. We learned about it last year in Potions."

Hermione brightened. "Good. Now, I was wondering something. You know that I'm going out with Draco right?" Pansy nodded slowly. "And, as you well know, he is the Seeker for the Slytherin's team, while Harry, my _best friend_, is Seeker for the Gryffindors. And, well, I guess it isn't that bad, but… Well, anyways, it's mostly you actually. Your dilemma is greater than mine, really."

Pansy gaped at Hermione disbelievingly. "What?" Was she hearing this right? 

"You heard what I said. Now," she continued, "the potion will be ready in time for the game tomorrow. I want you to meet me here."

"And then…"

Hermione's smirk would have made Draco proud. "And then we will switch places."

***

Harry sighed, leaning back onto the bed. The game against the Slytherins was the next day. Hermione had been acting very strangely for the past month. Always smiling strangely at him, and going off to find Draco more than she had before. Harry and Pansy had worked together quietly, although the – electricity really was the only way to describe it – was still there. 

He was a little nervous about what was going to happen the next day. It was the Gryffindors first game against the Slytherins since Draco and Hermione had started going out, and he wondered if she would cheer with the Slytherins, against him. 

Eventually, he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

***************

**A/N:** Yay! That was so much fun. If you all think this is out-of-character or whatever, tell me. I _might_ change it, the key word being _might_. 

**Calypzo****: Merci beaucoup!!**

**Darragh**** Tieraneux: *laughs* Well, I'm very glad you gave my story a chance!**

**0.o** and **Angel**: Aw, you guys are making me blush!

**PassionPolice237:** Well, through my perspective, it's a compliment. So thank you very much!


	6. In Your Disguise

**A/N:** Chapter Six. The Quidditch game! Oh, and I'm really sorry I'm being bad at updating this. I have three other HP stories going on right now. One's Ginny/Draco, and the other two are Hermione/Draco, although one of them has some Harry/Hermione in it, plus it's quite a bit angsty-like. 

I reposted the last chapter (twice), so you can go back and read it if you want. But you don't have to. I just changed it a little. Draco and Hermione are _not sleeping together. Yet. _

Btw, if you haven't read "Crimson Stains," by Crystal, you should. It's sad, yeah, but so what? It's wonderfully written, and makes you feel all happy at the end.

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, and Ginny/Neville

**Disclaimer:** A yellow road...two paths...the truth...or the lies. 

I guess I'll go with the truth.

I don't own shit. (there's your PG-13 rating)

**************

Pansy walked out to the Quidditch field, her heart in her stomach. She clutched the flask of Polyjuice Potion tightly in her pocket. 

"Hey, Hermione!" Virginia Weasley called to her. Well, she actually didn't realize it until the girl had called Hermione's name multiple times, but still. What did they call her? It wasn't Virginia… it was something shorter. She frowned. Ginny! That was it.

She forced a smile and walked over to the group making its way to the field holding Gryffindor banners. Seamus Finnigan grinned cheekily at her, holding one of them. Neville and Ron were carrying another, longer and larger one, while the girls—Ginny, Parvati, and Lavender—had some odds and ends that Pansy hadn't identified yet.

"Hi!" Pansy said. It came out sounding a little squeaky.

Ginny raised a brow at her before the expression changed to one of understanding. She stepped closer and said, quietly, "You're worried about Draco, aren't you?" At Pansy's incredulous look, Ginny continued. "Don't worry about it. He'll be fine." She gave her a small smirk. "I'm sure Harry won't beat him up too bad."

Pansy had to laugh at that, and Ginny moved back to the middle of the group looking satisfied. Pansy smiled the rest of the way to the stands, where they sat down near the front. She was happy, she freely admitted it. She really didn't have any friends in Slytherin. Blaise was there when she needed someone to unload on, but she really only unloaded her school problems.

No one knew about her love for Harry.

Although… she tilted her head. Gran—Hermione, she corrected herself, knew. She wondered if that meant they were friends. She sighed. She'd have to ask her later. Meanwhile, she smiled, she had a game to watch.

***

Harry took a deep breath, hearing the whistle blow, and head above the game, intending to watch the play while keeping an eye out for the Snitch. He saw Draco tail him with a smirk on his face. Harry caught his eye and cocked a brow, questioning. Draco's smirk widened and he shook his head. 

As Harry circled the field, his thoughts plagued him mercilessly. He was relatively sure he was getting over Hermione, but he still felt a pang whenever he saw her with Draco. And then there was, of course, the girl. The one night stand. He sighed to himself. At least he would find out at the Graduation Ball. Well, so long as she was telling him the truth. He wondered if there could be a future between them, then laughed at himself. Damn, but he was getting sentimental.

Pansy suddenly came to mind. He wondered when she had changed. It had to have been after fourth year. He really couldn't remember anything about her after that. Well, until they were paired together for that project in Transfiguration. But between fourth year and the project, he didn't remember her at all. She stopped tagging Malfoy, and that had apparently pulled her out of the spotlight. He sighed. The chemistry—he'd heard it called that—between them hadn't lessened a whit since they'd begun working on the project. 

Suddenly Harry saw a flash of gold to the left, and he shot towards it, his Firebolt speeding past Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. The two had joined the Slytherin Quidditch team as beaters when the others had graduated. He heard Malfoy dash after him. It was almost within his reach—he almost had it—

A resounding cheer went up from the Gryffindors. 

Harry had caught the Snitch.

***

Hermione's breath caught in her throat when Harry caught the Snitch. She sighed. Poor Draco. She stood up to cheer for Harry, then quickly sat back down when she saw the others. _That's right, she mentally berated herself, _you're supposed to be a Slytherin, stupid!_ She chuckled to herself. _

Glancing around, she saw Blaise Zabini giving her a strange look. She quickly looked back onto the field. The teams had landed, and Draco was shaking Harry's hand. Looking over at the Gryffindors, she saw herself. Well, she supposed it was Pansy. It was just really strange, seeing yourself… Ah, well. Pansy was cheering excitedly, looking ecstatic. Hermione smiled, standing with the rest of the Slytherins, leaving the stands. 

She saw Draco and ran towards him. He looked confused when she threw her arms around his neck, and she whispered, laughing, into his ear, "Draco, remember? The Polyjuice Potion."

Draco laughed and hugged her back, swinging her around in his arms. Hermione saw a few of the Slytherins grinning at each other, and she could have sworn she heard one of them say, boasting, "You owe me twenty galleons." Hermione frowned. She hadn't thought about that possibility. 

"Hey, Malfoy!" One of the Slytherins smirked at him. "Finally get rid of the Mudblood bitch?"

Hermione closed her eyes, feeling Draco's arms tighten around her. She knew what was coming, and felt a very small amount of pity for the person who had spoken.

Draco glared at the sixth year. "Why don't you shut your trap? And if you _ever call Hermione a Mudblood or a bitch, ever again, I will make you regret the day you were born."_

The boy stepped back, thoroughly scared. "S-sorry." He ran.

Hermione let go of Draco and smiled at him, letting him know she was grateful for his rebuttal. 

He smiled back at her. "Why don't we go to our—my," he corrected himself, glancing at the other Slytherins, "common room?"

She nodded and began to follow him. They were halfway there when an arm came out of nowhere and pulled her into an empty classroom. A hand went over her mouth, and she heard a feminine voice say, quietly, "So, Pansy. How are you?" She let Hermione go, but not before pushing the Gryffindor further into the room. "Or are you really Pansy? I don't think you are—but I don't know who you are, really. Why don't you tell me?" She paused. Hermione could now see that the girl was, in fact, Blaise Zabini. "Or, I could just wait for the Potion to wear off. And apparently," she smiled, seemingly devoid of emotion, "I won't have to wait that long."

Hermione could feel herself growing. Pansy was a good five inches shorter than she was. She closed her eyes and sighed. How would she get out of this one?

***

Blaise Zabini tilted her head, eyeing what looked like Pansy. She knew it wasn't, of course. All of her actions had said otherwise. It wasn't surprising that no one else had noticed. Slytherins were a stupid lot, she had to admit. Well, Draco and Pansy weren't that bad, actually, but they were all surrounded by idiots. 

Blaise had a pretty good idea of who "Pansy" really was. Hermione Granger was the only person that made sense. Obviously, it was not a Slytherin, since she'd almost cheered for Potter. But the scene with Draco… Well, she knew Draco well enough that she knew he would not drop Hermione. Yes, Blaise thought of her as Hermione. She had ever since the Gryffindor's relationship with Draco had become widely known. Draco loved Hermione. Blaise knew that no one believed a Malfoy to be capable of love, but even if they weren't, Hermione had changed it. Somehow, someway. 

Blaise grinned inwardly. And now she was quaking in her shoes. She could tell. She wondered what the girl would do when the Potion wore off completely. There were many things she could do… She could scream and run, she could sit quietly and talk, she could sit and yell. She could stand and yell. But she probably would do the second. 

And she was right. As soon as the last remnants of blonde had faded from Hermione's hair, she sat down in a vacant desk and gestured for Blaise to do the same. The Slytherin did so, if only because she needed to give her legs a rest. 

Hermione cleared her throat. "You're obviously wondering why I'm here…"

"And where Pansy is," Blaise added, smiling.

Hermione nodded. "Yes, well, you see… I realized a while back that…" she paused. "I don't know if I should tell you."

Blaise rolled her eyes. "Look, I'm not going to tell anyone."

Hermione eyed her warily, but continued. "I realized that Pansy likes Harry. And actually, not just likes, but loves." Blaise's eyebrows went up. "Yes, I believe that Pansy loves Harry. I don't know why, and Draco finds it as incredulous as I do, but we both agree it's there. Pansy and I switched places for the game. It was mostly for her, since I would have cheered both Draco and Harry without a second thought. I mean, no one would have questioned it. Draco's my boyfriend and Harry's one of my two best friends. But Pansy… well, she had no reason to cheer Harry. And I know she wanted to. So I made the potion, and offered her the option of using it at the game. She agreed. And here we are."

Blaise grinned. "And here we are." She frowned in thought for a moment, before saying, "Why did you help her?"

Hermione sighed. "That's a difficult question, really. It's partially because Draco's certain that Harry's in love with me. I want him to get over me, and I think that it would be best if someone replaced me. It would be quicker that way. And also because, well, Pansy's really a nice girl. Plus she's smart. No one notices though. It was just like no one noticed me until I started dating Draco. Before that, I was just the know-it-all, Harry Potter's best friend. And even now, I'm not known for myself. It's annoying." She gave a frustrated sigh. "But I'm getting off-topic. I think that Pansy deserves Harry. And I think that if he gets his head out of his arse long enough, Harry will notice her. I want to help him do that."

Blaise tilted her head thoughtfully. "Do you think I might be able to help you do that?"

Hermione stared at her, mouth agape in shock.

"What?" the Slytherin grinned.

"It's just…well, I didn't really think anyone would _want to help."_

Blaise nodded, looking thoughtful. "I can see why you might think that. But I agree with you. Pansy's smart, and nice, and she really does deserve Potter. What do you say we work on it together? I'm sure that with the two of us, they won't be single for long."

Hermione grinned, and stuck out her hand. "It's a deal."

***************

**A/N: Yay! What do you all think? I loved that. It was so much fun writing Blaise. I honestly don't know whether Blaise is a boy or a girl, but in this, she's a girl. **

**FTCWriter: Hey, don't berate yourself. I was trying to make it ambiguous. And I never mentioned whether Parvati was with anyone. Just be happy you didn't think it was Ginny or Padma or something… And I'm glad you like the pairings. I think it really has to do with the author's view of the characters. I could make you hate these pairings if I wanted to, believe me. Lol. But I don't want you to hate them, so I won't. Have fun reading. **

**dracos**** gurl: Don't worry—I will definitely keep writing. I am having a lot of fun writing this fic, and there is no way that I am going to abandon it anytime soon.**

**Jan McNeville: Glad you think so!!**

**Calypzo****: Basically they just drink the Potion after putting a piece of the other's hair in it—which makes them look like each other—and take each other's place. Hermione is Pansy and Pansy is Hermione. **

**PassionPolice237: Ah, yes. Your review. That was what prompted me to rewrite Chapter 5. Don't feel bad about it. I think I've said that before. I've revised it some, so you can reread it if you haven't already. I've made Hermione more aloof about the whole thing, if you didn't catch that. She mostly did the switching places thing for Pansy, since Pansy, as she said, would have looked weird cheering Harry, since she really had no reason to. Hope you like it. **


	7. In Your Eyes

**A/N:** I apologize so much for the extremely long wait! I lost inspiration … or something like that. I don't know exactly, but I couldn't write. Well, it might also have had something to do with all the other stuff in my _life interfering, but that stuff certainly did not help! So, without further ado, I give you Chapter Seven of __Just One Night!_

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, Ginny/Neville, and Blaise/?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own squat.

***************

Hermione paced her room, frowning. There was almost nothing they could do, it seemed. She and Blaise had sat for hours in the library, trying to come up with something that would get Harry and Pansy together, but they had come up with nothing. She let out a frustrated sigh.

"'Mione, love, what's the matter?" Draco asked, knocking on the door. "You've been pacing for the last half hour, and as much as I love you, it's getting very annoying."

Hermione chuckled, walking over to the door. She opened it and crossed her arms, leaning against the frame. "I don't know what to do about Harry and Pansy."

Draco sighed and leaned forward, kissing her lightly. He pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. "You've got to give it a rest. What about your schoolwork?"

Hermione waved a hand. "I have it all done for the next two weeks."

"See?" Draco said, raising his eyebrows. "Normally you'd have it done for the next month."

Hermione laughed and pushed him away. "Stop it!" she said, grinning. "I don't need you making fun of me," she said primly. However, the effect was ruined by the grin she was fighting to keep off her face. 

"'Mione, are you ready? It's time for dinner."

"Oh!" She glanced at her clock. "Yeah, let's go," she smiled at him. 

Draco grinned in return and offered her his arm in a courtly fashion, which she took with a small smile. They walked out of the common room, heading to the Great Hall in good spirits.

***

Ron glared at Draco as he escorted Hermione to the Gryffindor table. If it wasn't for Draco, Harry and Hermione would be together. Ron knew that he had to figure out a way to get them apart. He glanced at Hermione and found that she was staring at him with narrowed eyes. He quickly looked down at his food and started eating. 

Dinner was quiet, as both Harry and Hermione seemed to have a lot on their minds. Ron made his way to the library after both his friends mumbled goodbyes. He needed to come up with a plan. 

Of course, it might have worked if he hadn't been yanked into an alcove halfway to the library. He looked at his captor and gaped. "Hermione?" he asked, shocked.

She looked at him with narrowed eyes, her hand tightening on his robes. "I know you don't' like Draco, Ron, but _I don't care. I love him, and he loves me. I know that Harry loves me, but I don't love him like that. I love both you and Harry like brothers, and that will never change. Maybe Draco and I won't get married and have our happily ever after, but we're happy right now, and if you try to change that, it will make me _miserable_," she glared at him, drawing out the last word._

"Besides," she continued, and Ron was shocked to see a smile on her face, "I know for a fact that someone else loves Harry."

Ron raised a brow. "Who doesn't?" he asked rhetorically.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Someone loves him, and I think that she deserves him. So I'm trying to get them together."

"Since when do you like to play matchmaker?"

"Since my best friend is in love with me!" she snapped. Calming herself, she continued. "And I don't want him to be miserable, which is what he seems to be."

"Who is it?" Ron asked slowly.

"Pansy Parkinson."

"That—"

"Ronald Weasley!" 

Ron looked away, a small smile creeping its way onto his face. "Okay, okay." He frowned. "Wait, is that why you were so quick to defend her?"

"Mm-hmm," Hermione smiled. "And we switched places at the last Quidditch match."

"_What?_"

"Pansy and I switched places. I know that she wanted to cheer for Harry, but she couldn't very well do that if she was in Slytherin, now could she? And I didn't mind switching with her because I don't mind cheering for Draco."

Ron rolled his eyes. 

Hermione sighed, letting go of his robes. "Okay, so, my point is that I need your help." She started pacing. "Blaise and I have been trying to figure out something to do, but—"

"Wait. Blaise Zabini? She's a Slytherin."

Hermione glared at Ron. "Draco's a Slytherin, too, you prat."

Ron winced. "Okay, okay, no need for name-calling."

"You called Pansy a—"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, I take it back."

Hermione smiled. "Thank you. Now, as I was saying…"

***

Harry leaned back against his chair, waiting until he needed to add the next ingredient to his potion. Snape was watching everyone like a hawk, and he seemed particularly edgy today. Not even the Slytherins were daring to put a toe out of line.

They were working on the potions individually, as they weren't all that difficult. He was seated next to Ron, who was seated next to Hermione, who was seated next to Draco… And then the line ended.

Pansy was directly behind him. It was scary the way he could tell without even looking. Glancing over his shoulder when Snape's back was turned, Harry was shocked to find her staring directly at him. She met his gaze for a few seconds before turning back to her potion with a small smile…

Leaving Harry wondering why he had never before noticed the intense blue of her eyes.

***

The 'eye experience,' as he was now referring to it, had made Harry very jumpy. This was why, when Hermione snuck up on him in the library, he jumped at least five feet. Well, relatively speaking.

Hermione set her hands down on his shoulders. "What's the matter with you?" she demanded.

Calming his racing heart, Harry answered tightly, "Nothing. I've just got a lot on my mind, is all."

Hermione raised her brows but didn't pursue it, choosing instead to sit down next to him. "So, what are you working on?"

"That extra Potions essay Snape assigned me," Harry scowled, pulling the parchment toward him.

"The one you got because you added the lacewings before the frog legs and your potion almost self-combusted?" Hermione asked with a raised brow; it was obvious she was trying to keep a grin off her face.

Harry flushed, glowering at her.

"So," she said, pulling his essay back and starting to read it, "what distracted you?"

Harry didn't say anything for a minute; he just sat and stared at his best friend. It was strange—the familiar zing he usually felt in her presence…wasn't there. He supposed it hadn't been for a while, but this was the first time in a long time that he'd actually sat down and analyzed his feelings for her.

_When had it changed?_ he wondered philosophically. It must have been at the Halloween Ball. When he'd slept with … _her. It all came back to _her_, didn't it?_

What did that mean though? Was he in love with her?

No, Harry decided, that couldn't be it. It really wouldn't make sense, in the first place. The love would have to be based on lust, making it a very basic form of love. Nothing like what he'd felt for Hermione. 

Harry wondered, not for the first time, what would have happened if he and Hermione had actually gotten together. Would it have lasted? If all he had to do was sleep with another girl to forget about her, had his love really been that strong?

No… _But it wasn't just that, now was it?_ Harry's brain asked him. He sighed inwardly. No, it wasn't. As much as he hated to admit it, he had feelings for Pansy. And that was strange in itself. He supposed that right now it wasn't much more than the physical attraction and a basic crush… But if he was right, then there was the potential for more. Oh, yes, much more… 

***

"I now call this meeting of Operation: Get Harry and Pansy Together to order!" Hermione said, banging her gavel on the desk in an old, unused classroom.

"Honestly," Ron whispered to Draco, to whom he had become much more pleasantly disposed since Hermione had had her little talk with him, "What idiot gave her a gavel?"

"I don't know!" Draco whispered back. "I say we steal it before the next meeting."

Blaise, who was seated next to Draco, snorted. "I want to know who made up that name," she said under her breath. The two boys heard, however, and snorted with laughter.

Hermione, who had obviously heard at least some of their comments, glared at them. "Pay attention, you three! We have to figure out what to do!"

"What are we doing here anyways?" Ron asked, slightly confused.

Hermione threw up her hands and looked to the ceiling as if looking for some divine intervention. "We're trying to figure out how to get Harry and Pansy together, that's what!"

"You know," Blaise started, "it really shouldn't be that hard. Pansy's already fallen for him, and if you ask me, Potter's not that far behind."

Draco raised a brow at his housemate. "And just what makes you say that?"

Blaise rolled her eyes. "Uh, maybe it's the fact that he just _looks_ at her in Potions, and then he puts the lacewings in before the frogs' legs? Honestly, I've never _seen Snape so angry! It's a good thing Longbottom's cleaned up his act, or we'd all be serving multiple detentions."_

Hermion looked at Blaise, frowning. "That's why, then? I asked him about it earlier today, but he started thinking, and before I knew it he was off in Dragonland or some such place. I couldn't snap him out of it."

Blaise laughed. All of them were rather surprised; they'd never heard the Slytherin really laugh before. When she stopped, she looked at their surprised faces. "What?" she asked curiously.

Ron smirked. "It isn't every day you hear a Slytherin laugh like that."

Blaise rolled her eyes again, choosing not to comment. 

"Okay, then," Hermione said, smiling. "I feel much better about this now. But we still have to figure out at least one way to get them closer."

"How about detention?" Ron suggested.

"No…"

"Why not?" Ron demanded.

"Because, you prat, how are we supposed to get them both into detention with the same teacher without getting the rest of us in it?"

Ron let out a defeated sigh and slumped in his seat, put out. 

"Are you sure we can even do anything before the holidays, 'Mione? We've only got one week left before the Christmas ones start, and they go on for a little over a month," Draco pointed out to his girlfriend.

Hermione narrowed her eyes and looked closely at each one of them in turn. "Am I the only one here that wants this to happen?"

Ron and Draco refused to answer, although Blaise grinned and said smartly, "Of course not, Granger."

"Hermione," she corrected the Slytherin. "I call you Blaise, don't I?"

"Hey," Ron said, glancing at Blaise, "I thought Blaise was a guy's name; how'd you get stuck with it?"

Blaise sighed, as though it was a question she was asked repeatedly—which it probably was. "It is, but my parents had said that they would name their first-born child Blaise. I guess they thought I'd be a boy."

"Oh." 

"Honestly, Ron," Hermione chastised him, "that was a rude thing to ask."

"Don't worry about it, Hermione," Blaise said, shrugging it off.

Hermione sighed, but didn't pursue it. "So, what are we all doing for the holidays? I'm not going home, so I'll be here."

"Uh, actually, 'Mione," Ron said, sitting up straight again, "Mum owled me yesterday. She wants you and Harry to come to the Burrow for the holidays."

"Oh," Hermione said, glancing at Draco.

"I'm staying," Draco said quietly, "I'd rather not go home right now." His father was dead, murdered by Voldemort, after he had failed at a task assigned to him. His mother, Narcissa, was insane, and now occupied a ward at St. Mungo's. No one was completely certain why, although Draco had a pretty good idea. His father had been a very cruel man, to say the least.

"I'm staying as well," Blaise said after a few moments of silence. At their questioning looks, Blaise continued quietly, "My parents are dead. The mansion only has a butler and a few house elves; it's rather cold and quiet there."

Hermione was immediately filled with pity for the poor girl. She'd probably never had a good Christmas anyways, if the other Slytherins were any indication. She made a mental note to owl Mrs. Weasley. She needed to ask the kind woman something. 

***************

**A/N:** Once again, I am so sorry it took forever to update!!

**PassionPolice237:** Yes, I know it still doesn't make complete sense, but I still might change it; we'll see. And in response to your e-mail, Blaise's sex has never been stated in the books, although I've heard that Blaise is a guy's name. I addressed that in this chapter, as you probably saw.

**Intuerimors****: I like the Slytherin/Gryffindor thing as well. And I thought I mentioned it, but I guess I didn't. I'll have to in the future… Pansy grew out of her 'pug face,' as J.K. Rowling puts it. It's a lot like how I believe that Neville can't be clumsy forever; Pansy can't be ugly and mean forever either. **

**FTCWriter****: I know, I know, I should update more often. What can I say? I have problems with sitting down and writing, lol. Updates should come sooner next time!**

**SnapeJuice****: Wow. I'm all flattered here! No one's ever said that to me before…**

**Jan McNeville:** Glad you think so. *grin*

**avri**:** I try to update, and I'm sorry that this took so long!!**


	8. In the Classroom

**A/N:** I apologize so much for the extremely long wait! Again. So very, very sorry. *cringes* I need help or something… Like, psychiatric. Well, maybe not. Whatever. 

Hey, guess what? It's Spring Break! You know what that means, don't you? Yup! More time to write… *grins* They'll never keep me from the computer now…

**If you people want updates, join my Yahoo! Group: LiveALittle. It's for anyone who likes, agrees with, or is just _interested _in the Harry/Pansy pairing. Send a blank e-mail to LiveALittle-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to join.**

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, Ginny/Neville, and Blaise/?

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. What an original disclaimer.

***************

Molly Weasley was sitting at the table, reading the morning post. She was busy luxuriating in the rare quiet—which she rarely got with _six boys—when what she had just read processed through her mind._

_Dear Mrs. Weasley,_

_How are you? I'm doing very well, thank you. My grades are wonderful as usual, although I've been falling behind a bit lately because of—_

No, not that part…

_Well, I need to ask you something. I'm sure that Ron or Ginny owled you at some point to tell you that I was dating Draco Malfoy. As I'm sure you've heard, his father was murdered by Voldemort—_

Molly flinched.

_—and his mother is in St. Mungo's. During the last few weeks, I have befriended Blaise Zabini, another girl in my year._

She noticed that Hermione didn't specify which house the girl was in, and wondered at that.

_Anyways, as I was saying…___

Molly smiled to herself. Hermione did seem to get off-track quite easily. Her letters were multiple pages long. It was a welcome relief from six boys who thought revealing their emotions was 'unmanly.' And it didn't help that Ginny took after them.

_Well, Blaise doesn't have any family either, and I was wondering whether you might consent to having both Draco and Blaise spend the holidays with us at the Burrow. I understand that you don't have the best history with the Malfoys, but I assure you that Draco will be on his best behavior, or he'll answer to me. _

_I await your response…_

_Hermione Granger_

Molly leaned her chin into her hand, staring off into space. Well. She certainly had a lot to think about…

***

Hermione tapped her foot impatiently on the floor in the Great Hall. It was a week before Christmas break began, and she expected Mrs. Weasley's reply that morning. 

"Gods, Hermione," Ron said around a mouthful of bacon, "Whatever is the matter with you this morning?"

"Nothing," she snapped irritably.

"Temper, temper," Ron muttered under his breath, not really feeling it was worth it to provoke her anger. 

Hermione sighed. "I'm sorry, Ron, it's just that I owled your mum to ask if Blaise and Draco could come to the Burrow for the holidays, and—"

"Wait," he interrupted her, "did you just say that you asked my mum if Blaise and _Draco_ could come home for the holidays? Are you _insane_?" he shouted.

Hermione raised a brow, looking down her nose at him, her expression one of disdain. "Yes to the first, no to the second."

Ron just looked at her. "A _Malfoy is going to be in the _Burrow_?"_

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Ron," she chastised him, scooping some oatmeal into her bowl, "I thought you were really getting past that old feud."

"Uh, 'Mione, that doesn't exactly mean that I want him in my _house_ for _Christmas."_

"Jeez, enough with the italics already…" Hermione muttered.

"What?" Ron looked confused.

"It's nothing, Ron, just a little Muggle expression."

"Oh?" Ron asked, looking interested.

Hermione sighed. "I'm actually surprised Witches and Wizards don't have it as well. I mean, we both use italics, at least in published books. Well, you don't have computers, of course, so maybe you don't know what they're called, but italics stress words, and you're stressing a lot of words, and I was just commenting on that fact—"

"Wait, wait!" Ron said, looking confused. "What's a copmuter?"

Hermione sighed again, knowing she shouldn't have brought it up. "Okay…"

***

Draco looked at Hermione across the Great Hall, and sighed. She was looking quite fetching, despite the fact that she wasn't dressed any differently than normal. Suddenly, he sat up, looking disgusted. And he was. With himself, at least. He was beginning to sound like a love-sick fool. Not that there was anything wrong with that, exactly, but what if he slipped up and said something out loud? He shuddered. 

Even with the fall of the Dark Lord and the blemishing of the Malfoy name, most people still feared him. He preferred to keep it that way. Many people thought that he was just using Hermione. After all, since when did Malfoys know anything about love?

"Hey, Malfoy," Zabini said, sitting down beside him. Despite the fact that they were closer than they had been, they still called each other by their last names. Draco supposed it was just because they always had. 

"Zabini," Draco nodded, not exactly in the mood for small talk.

"What's with Hermione?" she asked, nodding over to where the Head Girl was nearly jumping up and down with anticipation.

Draco shrugged noncommittally. He honestly had no idea. Looking up, he noticed that the post had come, and looked down again, not expecting any letters. 

He was extremely surprised when a scrawny-looking, ruffled owl dropped a letter in front of him before dropping another in front of Zabini, and _then_ going to the Gryffindor table to drop another letter there—in front of Hermione. Draco watched as her face lit up, and she glanced at him, catching his eye and grinning. 

Draco looked down at the letter, addressed to him in a flowing script. He opened it curiously.

_Dear Draco Malfoy,_

_I am extending an invitation to you to come to the Burrow for the Christmas holidays. I request that you think it over before accepting or refusing._

_Sincerely,_

_Molly Weasley_

Draco raised a brow in shock, looking up at Hermione. She grinned at him again and looked over at Zabini, who wasn't doing anything, just staring into space.

"Hey," Draco said, trying to snap her out of … whatever she was in. "Zabini!"

She jerked, looking at him quickly. "Yeah?"

Draco shook his head, rolling his eyes. 

"What?" she asked defensively.

"Nothing," he said, smirking, and turned back to his food, effectively shutting out any future comments. 

***

Harry headed to his Transfiguration class, almost _skipping with anticipation. This was the last class he would have with Professor McGonagall before break, and although he thought she was nice—in her own way—she was a strict teacher. He was early, but he didn't think much of it. After all, he'd been early before. And what was wrong with being early, anyways?_

He walked into the classroom and sat at his desk, pulling out his things, noting dimly that Professor McGonagall wasn't there yet. He was whistling now, and had a small smile on his face. If he allowed himself to think about it at all, he realized that there was another reason he was so jovial—and it had to do with a certain blonde Slytherin. 

The sexual tension between them had sizzled, but both had been careful not to be alone with the other in case it escalated. Harry knew that he'd only felt that deeply _sexually_ once before—with _that_ girl. He'd felt that deeply _emotionally_ with Hermione… But this was still different. There was something about Pansy that he couldn't put his finger on…

Okay, _that_ brought up images he certainly couldn't be having just—he looked at the clock—fifteen minutes before class began. He adjusted himself on the seat, suddenly uncomfortable, just as he heard someone else walk in the door. He looked down at his desk, not wanting anyone to see the dark blush that was staining his cheeks. 

Someone sat down next to him and almost groaned out loud. Of _course_ it had to be Pansy. The Gods really didn't like him at all this year, did they? Of course they didn't. Why would they? He stole a glance at her and was shocked to find her staring at him. He held her eyes until she suddenly coughed and looked away, busying herself with her things. 

Harry felt another blush come on and pulled out a sheet of parchment, getting ready to take notes. He stole another look at the clock. _Argh__! he yelled to himself in frustration. Only two minutes had passed. They still had another seven minutes—at the _least_—before anyone else showed up. No one (well, except perhaps Hermione) cared to show up early for Transfiguration, of all things. _

"So," Harry said, clearing his throat. The tension in the room was killing him. "What are you doing for the holidays?"

"Oh, uh," Pansy paused. "I'm going home. My father and I never spent a lot of time together and now that my mother's gone—" She stopped, blushing. "Er, well, I'm going home for the holidays."

Harry nodded, wishing that someone would come in.

"What about you?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm going to the Weasleys'."

She nodded. Silence reigned again as both fought to look anywhere other than each other. 

Harry cleared his throat again, but didn't say anything. He was at a loss for words. Suddenly he heard a click and realized that Pansy had dropped her quill. "Oh, I'll—"

"I've—"

They knocked heads on the way down, and Harry snatched the quill, setting it on the table, before looking at her. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly, reaching out to touch her forehead where her hand was.

"I'm fine," she said, although she was flinching every now and then. 

"I'm sorry," he whispered, rubbing his thumb lightly over the slight bruise. Pansy's eyes were closed, but for some reason he doubted it was with pain. She opened her eyes abruptly, and caught his gaze. She seemed to be making a decision of some sort. Leaning forward, never breaking their gaze, she brushed her lips against his.

Harry sat in shock, not doing anything. Sure, he'd been having some slight, ah, fantasies about something like this, but he'd never imagined that _she_ had… And so, just as she was pulling away, he pulled her back, his hand on her neck, caressing lightly. She shivered, her hand coming up to grab the neck of his robes, pulling him closer. 

He'd never thought that she'd felt anything like this, nor that she would be the one to make the first move. Then again, he probably wouldn't have made any move whatsoever… Especially considering his past history. With Cho, he'd never told her anything, never made any move after asking her to the Yule Ball in his fourth year. With Hermione, he hadn't made any move at all. He was extremely grateful that Pansy had done something. 

The faint sound of people talking and laughing registered in his brain and he ended the kiss—albeit very unwillingly, and with slight opposition. "Later," he whispered, looking into her eyes, knowing it would be a very easy promise to keep…

***************

**A/N:** Finally! Here it is!! I finished it…

**siriusluver**: **Glad you like the pairings, and that you found (and liked!) the story. :)**

**howdidhenot** / ******Daman****: Thank you. I'll definitely be keeping up the good work.**

**dracos** gurl / Dreamer not believer: **Yup, it's still got Draco and Hermione. For some reason I love writing that pairing… Glad you think the Harry/Pansy pairing works.**

**PassionPolice237:** Well, as you can see, Pansy _won't _be coming for the holidays, but I found a way to bring her into them anyways. You'll see either in chapter nine or ten. I'm not sure yet which one.

**Jan McNeville:** *frowns* I'm not certain who gave her the gavel. She won't tell me.

**FTCWriter****: Thanks for understanding. And they _should figure out something soon…if they haven't already…_**

**Nikki:** Glad you like the D/He thing. And I can see why you're glad that it's not based on sex… A lot of D/He fics are, aren't they? Hmm. Glad you like the dialogue—it's one of the most fun things to write. 

**Lulu81:** Yeah, Ron probably would be more understanding about that whole thing if he were going with a Slytherin, but I like to think he's not _too stupid. I like unusual pairings as well… And in my opinion, I'm not done yet! There's more to come. ^^_


	9. In the Kitchens

**A/N:** Chapter Nine… Wow. This is getting long. But not nearly as long as "The Secrets of My Heart." Hmm. Well, the chapters are getting longer at least. And the updates are getting closer together. That's good anyways. 

**If you people want updates, join my Yahoo! Group: LiveALittle. It's for anyone who likes, agrees with, or is just _interested _in the Harry/Pansy pairing. Send a blank e-mail to LiveALittle-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to join, or go to . **

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, Ginny/Neville, and Blaise/?

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. What an original disclaimer.

***************

Both Harry and Pansy were very slow packing up their things—so slow, in fact, that even Ron and Hermione gave up waiting and headed to lunch without their friend. After all, the Dark Lord was gone. Harry could take care of himself. 

"Mister Potter, Miss Parkinson?" Professor McGonagall said sternly, looking over her glasses at her two students. "Will the two of you be leaving anytime soon or was their something you wanted to ask me?"

Pansy blushed, and, not finding anything to say to the Head of Gryffindor, shook her head and slipped out of the classroom. She heard Harry say something to the professor before following her out. He looked at her for a moment before suddenly giving her a small smile and motioning for her to follow him. 

Her heartbeat quickening slightly, the blonde-haired Slytherin followed the Gryffindor through countless corridors until they finally arrived at—a portrait of some fruit? Pansy frowned. What on Earth? Harry reached out and tickled the pear, and the portrait opened to the kitchens. She gasped. He turned around and grinned at her. "Aren't you coming?" he asked.

Not one to be left behind, Pansy quickly nodded and followed him inside. The kitchens were huge, and there were House-Elves everywhere, cleaning and polishing and cooking and baking…

There was a gasp and then a rush of little feet before something ran into Harry, almost knocking him over. Pansy stifled a laugh. "Harry Potter! Me is pleased to see you, sir! What is you wanting, sir?"

"Hello, Dobby," Harry smiled at the small House-Elf, backing up slightly until he reached Pansy. "This is my friend, Pansy Parkinson," he nodded his head towards her. "Do you think you could get us some of whatever they're serving for lunch?"

"Certainly, Harry Potter, Dobby will certainly give Harry Potter and his friend some lunch, sir," the House-Elf bobbed his head up and down, running to presumably get the lunch Harry had requested.

"Who was that?" Pansy asked curiously. She knew, of course, what House-Elves were—she had some at her Manor after all—but this Dobby character was something she'd never encountered before. For one, he had clothes on—including a pair of very bright, mismatched socks.

Leading her to a table of out of the way—and sight, she noticed—of the other Elves, Harry answered her. "I freed him from Mr. Malfoy's service in my—our—second year. At the beginning of our fourth year he got a job here, working for pay, with Winky, the House-Elf Mr. Crouch laid off at the World Cup Match that year. He's been grateful to me—for freeing him—ever since," he finished, running a hand through his unkempt hair, looking slightly embarrassed.

"That's so sweet of him!" Pansy exclaimed, shocking both herself and Harry. She blushed. "So, what about the socks?"

"Huh? Oh, well, he doesn't think that they're supposed to match. It's actually what I get for him every year for Christmas."

Pansy smiled at him happily. And she _was happy. She was sitting, by herself, with the boy she'd been in love with for most of her school years. He wanted to be there with her. He'd shown her this place. It was touching, to say the least._

Just at that moment Dobby ran up with the food. He set it on the table in front of them, bowing all the while and muttering praises of Harry while the man blushed. As soon as Harry convinced Dobby that they were fine, and that they would tell him immediately if they needed anything, the House-Elf left them alone to their meal, which they began with a small 'bon appetite' to the other.

When the food was almost gone, Harry asked quietly, "Why?"

Pansy colored slightly, knowing exactly what he was talking about. But what to tell him? "Because I wanted to," she said, looking him in the eye.

"Would you do it again?" he asked curiously.

"Yes," she answered, without a shred of doubt in her mind.

A slow smile appeared on Harry's face that prompted an answering smile of her own. He leaned forward, brushing his lips against hers, and was rewarded when she slipped a hand behind his neck, bringing his lips more firmly against hers. Harry groaned in answer, pulling her so that she was sitting on his lap. Pansy shivered slightly as she felt Harry's hand brush against her spine, sending little tingles of awareness all over her body. 

Oh, how she was enjoying this! It was even better than at the Ball, because now he _knew_ who she was, and he wanted to do this with _her_—not Hermione. It was so important to her that Harry want her for who she was, and nothing and no one else. It was probably the only time it had happened in her entire 17 years, and she was enjoying every second of it. Then again, who wouldn't?

Pansy broke the kiss suddenly, panting for breath, her blouse half unbuttoned and her arms wrapped around Harry's neck. She leaned her forehead against his and took a deep, shuddering breath. "What…was that?" she whispered, looking into his eyes.

Harry shook his head, looking bewildered. "I have no idea."

Pansy slipped out of his lap and sat back on her own seat, grateful that Dobby hadn't returned while they were, ah, otherwise occupied. He might have only been a House Elf, but it would have been embarrassing, to say the least. "So…" she trailed off, unsure what to say. "What _is this? What are __we?"_

Harry looked slightly uncomfortable, but he answered nonetheless. "I don't know. Maybe we should figure that out."

Pansy nodded. "Okay, but what's to figure out? I mean, we're partners in the Transfiguration project, we obviously aren't _friends, but we have fun snogging." She smirked slightly as Harry blushed._

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "_Are we going out?" he asked._

She sighed. "Well, we haven't been."

Harry nodded distractedly. "Maybe… Maybe we should let it sit over the holidays." He looked questioningly at her, as if he were seeking her permission. 

"Alright," she said slowly. "I can live with that." She smiled. "So, are we done?" she asked, indicating the food.

Harry nodded. "You don't need to pick it up. I think the House Elves would go nuts if they thought we did anything ourselves."

Pansy laughed suddenly, and Harry grinned in response. He stood up and took her hand, guiding her out of the kitchens.

"I'll take you to the Great Hall. You should be able to find your way back to the Slytherin dorms from there," he whispered to her. She smiled slightly. She had been doing a lot of that lately. Smiling, that is. Slytherins in general didn't smile; they really were a rather gloomy lot. Another of the reasons she hated being one. "Here we are," Harry said, coming to a stop. He pulled her to him, and took a glance around to make sure no one was in the vicinity before leaning down and kissing her softly.

She returned the kiss, putting all the feeling she had for him into it, hoping against hope that when they came back from the holidays he would want to pursue a relationship with her. It was extremely vital to her that he really want her—not just to snog when the occasion called for it, but to laugh with, to talk to, to cry with…

As he ended the kiss, they were both breathing hard. Neither seemed eager to part, but they knew they had to. "I suppose I'll see you later then," she whispered, before turning and heading towards the Slytherin common room. 

***

Hermione sat next to Ron at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, slowly eating her spaghetti. What on earth was keeping Harry? Ron didn't seem to be wondering, at least if the way he was staring at Padma was any indication. She scowled. Honestly, was _she that lovesick? She didn't think so. Well, she hoped not at least. That would be embarrassing. Especially since not everyone believed that Draco returned the sentiment. The only thing worse than a lovesick fool was an unrequited-lovesick fool. _

She glanced over at her boyfriend, who was sitting with Blaise. She squelched a sudden flash of jealousy, knowing that Blaise had no interest in her boyfriend romantically. At least, that was what she said. And she had no reason not to believe the girl. Even though Slytherins were said to be a lying, manipulative lot—and she had no doubt that both Draco and Blaise could be—she didn't think she would be that way with her. 

"Hey, Hermione." Harry sat down next to her, jolting her out of her reverie.

"Harry!" she gasped, holding a hand to her heart. "You scared me!" 

"Sorry," he grinned. 

"Wait," she narrowed her eyes at him, "Where have you been?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "Pa-Parkinson and I had to ask Professor McGonagall some questions." He shrugged. "It took longer than we thought it would."

Hermione eyed her friend suspiciously, but he seemed to ignore her gaze, concentrating instead on getting some more food. Honestly, where did boys put all of it? She sighed, turning back to her own. They needed to have another meeting of Operation: Get Harry and Pansy Together before they all left for break, so that—

She sat up straight. Wait a minute. All the members were going to the Burrow. A slow smile appeared on her face. So they would have all of Christmas break—three whole weeks—to figure out what they were going to do. They had three weeks to find a way to throw Harry and Pansy together. She grinned. They were going to be together by the end of the year, and nothing was going to stand in their way.

***************

**A/N:** Okay. I know, it's not quite as long as they have been, but I didn't really have anything else to write. I have no idea how long the next chapter will be. Hopefully longer, but I'm not making any promises here. 

**Dreamer not believer:** Well, I honestly don't know whether I thought up the pairing or not, but I do know that not many people ever would, because most of them have this view of Pansy as being a stuck-up, pug-nosed bitch (excuse the language). I read a fic once where she wasn't that bad, she was actually nice, and I thought, "Hey, what if she and Harry got together?" They didn't, at least not in that fic, but the idea was stuck in my head, so when I got an idea I went for it.

**Alex:** Where do I get ideas? Hmm. I don't know exactly. Maybe it comes from reading so many books and fics and all that. I actually don't remember how I came up with the idea for this one. Glad you like the pairings. :) I might be able to get Oliver Wood in here at some point… *shrugs* We'll see. I'll keep it in mind, 'kay?

**PhoenixRae****: Congrats on figuring out it was Pansy. So glad I hooked you so quickly. And you'll get more of the Weasley family in the coming chapters, as you already know. *grins* Hope you have fun reading about it.**

**kittygirl220:** Your Highness, here is your chapter.

**Crystalline Lily: **Glad you had fun with that chapter. ^^

**Lulu81:** Harry kept his promise, so you don't have to break his neck… And yeah, Ron's not _too stupid, lol. But you're right—a lot of the fics (and the movie) show him as being that way, and also rather innocent. He's like that, I guess. I can't tell you what the unusual pairing is… At least _I_ think it's unusual. So far as I know it hasn't been done before, but how am I supposed to know? Have I read all the fics out there? I don't think so. I'll take the reviews here, I think. _

**Jan McNeville:** *grin* Oh, he'll have fun… The question is who will have more fun. 

**PassionPolice237:** Yup. I'm having a lot of fun figuring out all this stuff. This chapter wasn't one of my better ones, but it's kinda… I dunno, transitional. I hate writing that stuff. It's bloody annoying. And difficult. Almost no fun. I'm rambling. 

**Nikki:** Harry is a sweet guy, isn't he?****


	10. In Diagon Alley

**A/N: **I'm baaaaaack! With Chapter TEN! Hehehe. There's not much more of this fic left, actually… While on vacation (figuratively… I only wish I had been really) I realized that there isn't much of this story left. For that I am rather sad… It _was, after all, my first _Harry Potter _story. And now *sniff* it's almost over…_

Okay, I am soooooooo sorry about this whole big mess I've made with trying to rewrite this. After getting a review from PassionPolice237, I started thinking. See, I actually have this whole thing finished. This version, at least. So I have, as you can see, reposted the chapters that were up before, and I will now start posting new chapters, beginning with this one. **I will post the new and revised version on FictionAlley.Org, however, so if you would like to read it, go there. I only have the first two chapters up currently, but I will be working on the rest of them ASAP.**** Also, if you would like to know when I update there, either tell me in a review (and leave an e-mail address) or join the group I talk about down there \/, LiveALittle.**

**If you people want updates, join my Yahoo! Group: LiveALittle. It's for anyone who likes, agrees with, or is just _interested _in the Harry/Pansy pairing. Send a blank e-mail to LiveALittle-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to join, or go to the site listed in my profile. **

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, Ginny/Neville, and Blaise/Charlie

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. What an original disclaimer.

***************

Harry grabbed some Floo powder from Ron and stepped into the fireplace. "Diagon Alley!" he yelled, wincing slightly as he began to spin. He sighed in relief when he came out where he was supposed to and stood back, waiting for Ron and Hermione to come through. Everyone else was already out. He nodded at Draco, who was standing on the other side of the fireplace, obviously anxious to make sure Hermione was alright. It was rather cute, the way Draco cared about Hermione. It was even better that she fully reciprocated. 

Hermione came out and landed on her bum, coughing slightly. Draco jumped forward to help her up, asking, "Are you alright, 'Mione?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she laughed. Draco grinned at her and they stepped back, just in time as Ron came flying out. 

"My, my, my," Mrs. Weasley smiled at them, "aren't we graceful today."

Ron rolled his eyes, swiping at the soot on his clothes. "Well then," he said, "aren't we going to do our shopping?"

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley smiled and left their children as they made their way to the Leaky Cauldron. Bill smiled, mentioning that he was meeting Fleur in an hour and wanted to browse before then, left, heading towards Flourish and Blotts. Hermione hurried after him, Draco tailing her, while Fred and George headed to their joke shop, situated next to Madam Malkin's. 

Harry glanced at the remaining individuals; Ron, Ginny, Charlie, and Blaise. The latter two were glancing at each other occasionally, trying to be obvious about it, while Ron was watching them curiously, and Ginny was watching them knowingly. "Well," she said, a smile on her face, "I'll be off browsing; I might see Neville at Florean Fortescue's. I mentioned I would be here today, but I don't know whether he remembered or not."

"Yeah, I'll go with you," Ron said, looking away from Charlie and Blaise. He hurried after his sister, not bothering to see where Harry would be going.

"Well," Harry said, looking at two remaining people. "I suppose I'll just, uh, browse around then." He strolled off down the street, looking in windows curiously. Stopping in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies, he looked at the newest broom. It had come out in July; the Nimbus 3000 had it all—better cushioning charms, better braking, better… Well, better everything, basically. He sighed. He still felt his Firebolt was better—as it undoubtedly was—but it would have been nice to try it out.

"Harry?" 

Harry turned towards the voice, grinning when he saw it was Pansy. "Hello, Pansy," he grinned at her. She smiled back.

"How are you doing?" she asked. 

"Fine; here with the Weasleys buying Christmas presents. And you?"

"My father and I are here, actually. He's in the Leaky Cauldron while I have some time to myself." She smiled. "It's really nice to see you."

"And you," Harry said. She was looking nice too. Her robe was a dark green that accentuated her honey blonde hair, and… Harry frowned. Dark green robe. Honey blonde hair. Stunning figure. Now where had he seen that combination before?

Oh, that's right; he'd only _slept with it._

"It was you," he whispered.

Pansy frowned, obviously confused. Understanding dawned on her face; she took a step forward. "Harry…"

He laughed coldly. "How long were you going to keep it a secret, Parkinson?" he asked. She flinched at the use of her last name. "That you'd slept with me, I mean? How was I supposed to have known? How? Tell me."

"Harry," Pansy whispered, "I was going to tell you at the Graduation Ball, remember? I was going to tell you."

"How do I know? Do you know how difficult it is, not knowing who you lost your virginity with?" he whispered menacingly.

Pansy sighed. "Harry, I don't see what the huge problem is."

"Pansy," Harry said, "We slept together. You, and me. But I didn't know who you were. Then you pretty much disappeared. And then I begin to notice you and, Gods forbid, fall in love with you. All the while, I have no idea who you are."

"Harry…"

"Pansy… I just… I need some time to think about this. I'll talk to you at school." And he turned away, leaving her behind him.

***

Hermione sighed. "Draco, do we have to go?"

"Hermione, we just spent fifteen minutes in Flourish and Blotts—"

"Exactly! It was only fifteen minutes, we should—"

"Hermione, please?" he pouted.

Hermione sighed. "I hate it when you do that. How am I supposed to say no to that face? Fine, let's go."

Draco grinned, grabbing his girlfriend's hand and nearly dragging her towards Quality Quidditch Supplies. He stopped short when he saw Pansy standing in front of it, tears running down her cheeks. Hermione caught sight of it as well and ran up to the girl, Draco just seconds behind her. 

"Pansy?" she asked worriedly. "Are you alright?" She glanced towards where Pansy was staring and raised her brows curiously. Harry was disappearing into the crowd. "Pansy, what happened?"

She shook her head. "I can't explain it, there's, there's too much, and… I just, I can't tell you. I can't explain it. It's too complicated, and… I just can't." The tears ran down her cheeks, and Hermione put her arm around the girl, steering her towards the Leaky Cauldron. When Pansy realized where they were going, she stopped. "No; my father's there, he can't see me like this…"

"Alright…" Hermione trailed off, wondering where to go. She glanced down the street, smiling in triumph when she saw Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. They walked quickly to the shop, Draco trailing behind. "Fred, George!" she called as she stepped inside. Two red heads popped up from behind the counter.

"Hermione!" Fred grinned.

"So lovely to see you," said George.

"Who've you got there?" Fred asked.

"This is Pansy Parkinson," Hermione explained. "Can we go into your backroom?"

"Of course; anything for a pretty lady," George smiled at her, and winked at Pansy, walking back and opening the door with his key. He held the door wide so that Hermione, Pansy, and Draco could step through, and closed it behind them.

"Alright, Pansy," Hermione said softly, as they sat on the couch, "would you like to explain it now?"

"I-I can't," she whispered, tears still streaming down her face. Draco handed her a handkerchief. "It's not only complicated, but rather, uh, private."

"Pansy, we won't tell anyone anything."

"I _know_ that," Pansy rolled her eyes. "The thing is, it _is_ private, and I'd rather not explain it to you."

Hermione sighed. She'd have to get the story out of Harry then. "Alright, I suppose we can just stay here until you're done crying."

Pansy smiled through her tears. "Thanks, Hermione."

"Anytime, Pansy," Hermione whispered, "anytime."

***

Harry sat in a chair near the back of the parlor at Fortescue's. It had been Pansy, all along. Oh, how she must have been laughing at him… He gave a frustrated sigh. And he'd very nearly admitted that he loved her, as well. And he did. He hadn't even realized it until that very morning, when he'd been thinking about her—as he'd spent most of his vacation. Thinking about her, that is. 

He'd realized that he loved her, and he'd made the decision to date her, to ask her to become his girlfriend. 

And now…

Now he didn't know. Now he had no idea what would happen. He just couldn't get over the fact that she was the same girl he'd fretted over for so long. He'd wondered about a future with both of them. And now he'd found out they were the same person. 

Shouldn't he be ecstatic, in a way? He had, after all, found out the identity of The Girl. And she was someone he'd already been having feelings about anyways. So why _wasn't_ he ecstatic? Why wasn't he bouncing off the walls? Why was he rather… sad, and… Well, feeling almost betrayed? He wished he knew. Oh, how he wished he knew…

***************

**A/N:** Oh, come on. You knew it had to happen sometime. I couldn't wait till the Graduation Ball; it was _way_ too far away.  And, this might actually be the last chapter. I can't decide yet. There _will_, however, be an epilogue. In fact, I've already written it. And, just so you know, this is not the last you've seen of me with this story. Blaise and Charlie will have their own fic; in fact, I've already started it. And when that's done, I'll focus on Ginny and Neville. And if you want more Harry/Pansy, never fear! I have two more fics in planning for them. In fact, both of them are spin-offs of other fics I'm writing right now. Anyways, I might have another chapter after this; we'll see. But definitely an epilogue. I just have to decide whether you'll have anything before that. Well, you probably will. Hehe.

Oh, and you're probably wondering why I skipped so much. To tell you the truth, I didn't know what to write… And I was afraid of making something that I do in the Blaise/Charlie fic impossible by doing something conflicting in this one. I'm sorry there wasn't very much of the Weasley boys in this chapter. Know that they'll play a larger role in my Blaise/Charlie fic. The next chapter (yeah, I've pretty much decided there _will_ be another chapter before the epilogue) will have our favorite characters back at Hogwarts. Harry has made his decision. What is it?

***

Seeing as how, thanks to all this changing around I've done, I have no idea who I've answered and who I haven't, I am unable to thank anyone besides Nikki and PassionPolice237 for reviewing. :)


	11. In Our Relationships

**A/N: ***sniffle* The last chapter… *sob* I'm gonna miss it… This chapter isn't as long as the others. Sorry. It's mostly for closure, and all that fun stuff. Sorry I didn't answer anyone's reviews… Thanks to: **Nikki, ****Jaded, **Priestess Morgane**, ****CapriceAnn** Hedican-Kocur**, ****Kemenran, **luvs2party**, and **me**. And a special thanks to **PhoenixRae**, who has really helped me get this finished and posted (and ****PassionPolice237, for that matter). Go read their stuff! I think they're both on my favorite authors list. Epilogue will be up soon.**

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairings:** Harry/Pansy, Hermione/Draco, Ron/Padma, Ginny/Neville, and Blaise/Charlie

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. What an original disclaimer.

***************

Harry walked out of Gryffindor Tower, whistling. Yes, he was whistling. He was actually in a relatively good mood as he walked towards the entrance to the castle. He'd finally decided what he was going to do. After weeks of deliberation—and being periodically interrupted by one of the many Weasleys (and eventually Draco or Blaise)—he had finally come to a decision about what he termed the "Pansy problem." He was going to talk to her. 

He had an insane urge to laugh. It should have been apparent all along—_talk_ to her.

Pansy was sitting on the steps in front of the school, staring out at the lake, bundled up in her cloak. He very nearly ran over her, she was so hidden. "Oh, Pansy, I'm sorry. But I do need to talk to you; may I?" he asked, gesturing to the step beside her. 

She nodded, watching him closely. She hadn't seen him since Diagon Alley, and had missed him immensely. She only hoped he felt the same.

"Pansy, I think I've finally figured out what the hell is wrong with me," he said finally.

"Okay…" she said, looking confused…and also trying to keep down (what would undoubtedly be) a large laugh at his wording.

"I'd like to go out with you; give _us a try. But I think that we really need to talk about it first. That might have been what was missing all along. I mean, the first time…" he trailed off, looking slightly uncomfortable. "Well, obviously at the ball we didn't really _talk_, and I'm afraid we never talked after that, when I knew that you were __you. Er, you know, uh…"_

Pansy giggled softly, rather enjoying his discomfort. 

"Well," he started again, "we just, we didn't talk, and I think we should."

"I think that's a wonderful idea," Pansy said.

"Really?" Harry said brightly.

"Yup," she grinned. "I'm very grateful for the fact that I have a guy who is willing to talk…there aren't many of those around. But right now," she raised an eyebrow at him suggestively, "how about we _not talk?"_

"I can very much agree with that," Harry murmured, leaning down to kiss her.

***

Hermione watched the new couple snogging on the front steps and smiled, leaning her head on her boyfriend's shoulder. "They're so adorable. I'm so glad they're together."

Draco snorted. "It's not as though we helped them you know."

"I know," she sighed, "but somehow I think it's almost better that they found each other on their own…"

"I'll never know how you got Harry to tell you, will I?"

"Nope," Hermione grinned.

Draco sighed.

"Young love…" Hermione said.

"Are you referring to us?" Draco asked curiously, playing with his girlfriend's hair.

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. I suppose, in a way."

"Speaking of which… I have something to ask you, Hermione."

"What?" she asked, turning to him, her eyes curious.

Draco pulled something out of his pocket. "Give me your hand."

She held her left one, the one nearest to him, out and he grabbed it, slipping something onto her fourth finger. He let go and she brought it up to her face. She gasped. "Draco…" she trailed off, tears filling her eyes.

"Hermione," Draco said, tilting her head so that he could look into her eyes. "I love you; you know that, right?" She nodded, her eyes bright. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you, living in the same house, raising our children together…" He grinned, brushing her hair away from her face. "Will you marry me?"

Hermione grinned, swiping the tears off her face. "With a proposal like that," she said matter-of-factly, "how am I supposed to say no?"

"Is that a yes?" Draco asked seriously.

"Of course it's a yes," Hermione grinned, pulling his head down for kiss.

***

Ron kissed Padma quickly, watching as she headed to the Ravenclaw table. He loved her. He knew it, she knew it… But now, for some reason, he wanted the entire world to know it. He knew better than to shout it out, of course, but they were halfway through their seventh year. They would be graduating in just over six months. 

He was going to ask her to marry him. He grinned suddenly, making his way to the Gryffindor table. He really hoped she said yes, although he had no idea why she wouldn't. It was lunchtime, so he didn't know whether he would see Harry or Hermione; they had both disappeared earlier that morning, and he hadn't seen them since. Classes started up again the following day. He couldn't believe the holidays were over. He'd had fun at the Burrow, even with Draco's presence.

As he was helping himself to a large serving of mashed potatoes, Ron felt someone sit down next to him. "Hi, Ron!" Hermione said cheerfully.

"Hello, Hermione," he replied. Glancing at her cheerful, flushed face, he frowned. What on earth was making her so happy? "Hermione?" he asked.

"Yes?"

"What is it?"

Her smile widened and she held up her left hand. Ron's eyes widened at the sight of the intricately woven gold band. There was a diamond with two small sapphires on either side of it in the middle; it must have cost a fortune. "Draco asked me to marry him!" she squealed.

Ron grinned. "Congratulations, 'Mione." He might not have liked Draco all that much at the beginning, but the three weeks they had spent at the Burrow had definitely helped to clear the air, and if he wasn't mistaken, he'd even started to like the Slytherin, at least a little.

Suddenly, the Hall fell silent. Ron and Hermione looked up. Harry and Pansy had walked in, hand-in-hand. Harry leaned down and kissed her before she walked away, leaving him to head to his own table. Harry grinned at his best friends as he sat down and talk broke out amongst the students again.

"So," Hermione raised a brow, "You and Pansy are together, eh?"

"Yeah," Harry smiled. 

"Good for you," Ron said behind a mouthful of food. "Hermione's engaged."

Harry looked at her left hand, which she was holding up. "Congratulations! When's the wedding?"

Hermione laughed. "We don't know yet. I think he just wanted to make sure that I was willing."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh, as if he didn't know that already."

"Harry!" Hermione smacked his arm playfully.

"Oy, you two," Ron mumbled. 

Harry sighed, scooping up some meat loaf and mashed potatoes for himself before smothering them both with gravy. "I guess this is the end."

"Or the beginning," Hermione said.

"Well, I mean the end of our single days. We each have a serious relationship now."

"So it's the beginning of our serious relationships," Hermione pointed out.

Harry sighed. "Okay, fine."

"All's well that ends well," Hermione quoted.

Harry grinned. "Even if the beginning wasn't that great."


	12. Epilogue: In the End

_Epilogue_

  
  


Harry stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked to the library. He knew that she would be there; the N.E.W.T.s might have been over, but he knew that she would be studying, still. Walking through the doors, he saw her near the back of the library, facing away from him. He grinned and walked up to her softly, his hands coming around to cover her eyes. She gasped quietly.

  
  


"Guess who," he whispered into her ear. He felt her smile.

  
  


"Harry," she breathed, turning around. He let go of her eyes and leaned down to kiss her on the lips, their breaths mingling as he felt her hands come up to his neck. 

  
  


"Pansy," he said, pulling away. "Do you want to come outside with me? To the lake?"

  
  


She glanced at the windows, raising a brow. "Harry, it's raining."

  
  


"So?" he asked. "Live a little."

  
  


Pansy shook her head, smiling. "Only you could make me do this." She stood, picking up the book she had been reading and putting it back on the shelf. He grabbed her hand and walked with her to the entrance to the Great Hall. She stopped. "Harry, what about our raincoats?"

  
  


"A simple spell will work," he grinned, performing it on both their robes. "Hermione taught it to me."

  
  


"I still can't believe how well everyone took our relationship," she said softly as they walked outside.

  
  


Harry shrugged. He didn't really care what anyone thought anymore. He reached into his pocket, fiddling with the box in his right hand. They reached the lake, sitting under the tree next to it, which repelled some of the rain. A flash of lightning lit the sky, thunder coming just a few seconds later. Pansy sighed, leaning against Harry's shoulder. They both loved the rain. Harry had once said it was the only thing that had made him feel good back at the Dursleys'. The rain. It had made him feel… Not quite so alone.

  
  


Pansy had felt the same way a lot of the time. Her mother had not been the easiest person to live with, and although her father was better, he had still been not all there, thanks to her mother. 

  
  


Harry kissed Pansy on the forehead and pulled away slightly. "Pansy, we need to talk."

  
  


She frowned, feeling a little nervous. Did he want to break up? Maybe that was why he was being so quiet.

  
  


"Well," he said slowly, "to be more specific, I need to ask you something."

  
  


Pansy nodded slowly, her initial fears receding, although the nervousness increased tenfold.

  
  


"Pansy, I love you."

  
  


Tears filled her eyes. "I know," she whispered, "I love you, too."

  
  


He smiled at her, pulling her towards him for a quick kiss… Or at least it was supposed to have been quick. But it lasted a good five minutes, and when they finally pulled away they were both nearly out of breath. "Where was I? Oh, right. Well, I honestly don't know how to say this… Gods, I guess I should just come right out with it." He took a deep breath, and pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket. "Pansy Parkinson, I love you with all my heart; will you marry me?"

  
  


Tears filled Pansy's eyes and she threw her arms around him, the sudden movement pushing him to the ground. She kissed his lips with renewed fervor, and he responded just as passionately. "Oh, Harry," she whispered as she pulled away, looking into his eyes, "I love you so much; of course I'll marry you!"

  
  


"Good," Harry grinned, slipping the ring onto her finger, "'cause if you'd said no I would've had to go find Ginny."

  
  


Pansy rolled her eyes, grinning, and slapped him playfully, looking down at the ring on her finger. It was a simple gold band with a diamond in the center, two smaller ones on either side. Leaning down, she whispered against his lips, "Well, we can't have that, now can we?"

  
  


And they didn't come up for air for a long, long time.

  
  


~fin~


End file.
